CAIR Upset over Religion at the Ballpark

A national Muslim advocacy group believes its inappropriate for professional sports and religion to mix.

"I'm not exactly sure the ball park is the appropriate setting for these kinds of things," said Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Council on American Islamic Relations.

Hooper was responding to an announcement by the Oakland A's that they will host a Jewish Heritage Night in May. Attendees will receive an A's yarmulke, according to USA Today.

"It doesn't seem to be the best setting for religious activities," he told Fox News Radio. "For example, if you're honoring one particular faith and you have tens of thousands of fans, how does that make them feel in terms of being included or excluded?"

It's not unusual for Major League Baseball and other professional sports organizations to host events for specific religious groups. Hooper said to his knowledge, Major League Baseball has never hosted a Muslim-themed event.

"The real test of this kind of policy would be if you hosted a Muslim Family Day at a ballpark and gauge the public's reaction to that," he said. "Unfortunately we've had a tremendous rise in anti-Muslim sentiment in our society."

"We've had a few incidents at sporting events where Muslims were singled out," he said, referring to a football game where Muslims were praying and there was a "negative reaction" from fans.

"I'm not sure that the mixture of religion and sports at this level is the most appropriate," Hooper said. "We'll have to see how these things are received."

Steve Fanelli, a spokesman for the A's, told USA Today that teams use religous-themed nights for group ticket sales and because religous groups in their community approach them.

"Beyond religion it's the same philosophy for any theme day: give fans a chance to enjoy baseball with their group and get together in an environment they may not otherwise choose to," Fanelli told the newspaper.